OK – so I know this album came out in 2003.
And I listened to it then. A LOT.
But I’ve only JUST had a realisation about the title of this great album (no Stereophonics hate messages here, please).
What penny dropped?
What does it mean?
Are they still going???
I’ve written about my exploits with the brand education giant that is Level C many times – it’s been a solid staple of pushing my practice and mind for the past 3 years. They are all about pushing your thinking, hugely out of your comfort zone and encouraging radical differentiation.
Essentially – DISRUPTION is the name of the game.
Both as an individual, and for our clients and the brands they are building.
Learning about assumption opposition, zagging, reframing problems, digging deep in unchartered territory is all part of their process. But let’s be honest, most clients and brands don’t WANT that. Do they NEED it? Yes. But 9 times out of 10, brands want to be unique to themselves within known parameters of what’s been before.
And don’t get me wrong, there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG with that! We’ve created immensely impactful brands for courageous organisation leaders that aren’t disruptors. Lots of them.
But here’s the thing.
There is always, ALWAYS an opportunity to disrupt, to innovate and to invent.
What the teachings have taught me is that in order to push everyday, salt of the earth, back bone of the country brands, we need to push them forward, even just a little bit. We need to challenge and differentiate. Call it gentle disruption.
But in order to do that, we need to know what REAL disruption looks like.
We need to push our own practices beyond our own limiting beliefs and habits.
We gotta go there, to come back.
It’s important that we show clients what’s possible – what they COULD be, how it COULD play out for them, to encourage them to move beyond where they are. Completely different landscape they may be used to, seeing in a new way.
There’s a saying I often use “what go you here won’t get you THERE” – and unearthing what “THERE” looks like is down to us, as strategists and creatives, to create and invite them to go there.
And so, we no longer call our radical concepts the ‘wildcard’. They could be the golden ticket, the music to their ears, the something they’ve been waiting to see and hear, they’ve just never felt comfortable to go there or even know what it could look like.
So, nearly 20 years later, I thank Stereophonics for that title, Level C and Andy Starr for keeping that momentum going, for pushing the envelope of what’s possible.
Next January sees THE disruptor of the moment Liquid Death with Steve Nilsen taking the floor on the Masterclass 1 and I could not be more excited. This will be a lesson for us to witness what it looks like when “THERE” is not only imagined, it’s built, blown up, rebuilt, moved and blown up again. Can’t wait.
Next time you’re creating anything for your business. Stop and think what can we do here that’s truly different that’s going to grab people’s attention, to get people to stop and think (about your brand), to offer something fresh and exciting for your audience – to be unignorable.
Get in touch if you want to chat that through, I’m offering up 2 slots for my Nurture Session in December where you get 3 hours of my brain to discover “THERE”, and maybe blow it up.
Stereophonics may be playing in the background…
Contact me for more details.
Lauren 🌱
